Bluff (), previously known as Campbelltown, is a town and seaport in the Southland region, on the southern coast of the South Island of New Zealand serving as the main port of Invercargill. It is the southernmost town in mainland New Zealand and, despite Slope Point and Stewart Island being further south, Bluff is colloquially used to refer to the southern extremity of the country (particularly in the phrase "from Cape Reinga to The Bluff"). According to the 2018 census, the resident population was 1,797, a decrease of 6 since 2013.
The Bluff area was one of the earliest areas of New Zealand where a European presence became established. The first ship's crew known to have visited the harbour were from Perseverance which had anchored at Stewart Island in 1813. They were in search of flax trading possibilities, with the first European settlers arriving about 1836 when a whaling station was established by William Stirling.
The town was officially called Campbelltown in 1856, became a borough in 1878, and was renamed Bluff in 1917.
Many of the streets in Bluff are named after rivers in Ireland. These include the streets Blackwater, Shannon, Boyne, Liffey, Barrow, Foyle, Slaney, Bann, Suir, Lee, Bandon and Lagan.
Geography
Bluff is by road from Invercargill, and the southern terminus of the Bluff Branch, the continuation from Invercargill of the Main South Line. This was one of New Zealand's earliest railways, opening on 5 February 1867.
Bluff is at the end of a peninsula that forms the western side of Bluff Harbour and Awarua Bay, with the port located in the relatively narrow entrance channel. It is on State Highway 1, which terminates one kilometre to the south of the town at Stirling Point. At Stirling Point, a signpost showing the distance and direction to various major cities and locations around the world, including the Equator and the South Pole.
Bluff is dominated by Bluff Hill / Motupōhue (standing at ), which provides some shelter from the prevailing westerly winds. There is a path along the shore through native bush up to this point. The town is named for this bluff, which was known to early whalers as Old Man's Bluff. East across the entry channel from Bluff is Tiwai Point, home to New Zealand's only aluminium smelter and its wharf. Alumina is shipped from Australia and electricity is supplied by the Manapouri Power Station in Fiordland National Park.
A chain sculpture on the coast near Bluff symbolises the Māori belief that Stewart Island is anchored to South Island; a similar sculpture in Rakiura National Park represents the other end of the chain.
Climate
Like most of New Zealand, Bluff experiences an oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification Cfb). Winters are very mild and only occasionally go below freezing, even though in every month the temperatures had already gotten at least close to it. Likewise, summers are moderately warm and rarely exceed 25 °C, however, even in July and August they already have reached 20 °C. With 32.1 °C, Bluff's highest temperature has been above the one of Auckland Airport.